AVON CLEAN ENERGY COMMISSION
AVON ROOM - BUILDING #1 TOWN HALL
MINUTES
JANUARY 6, 2010
I. CALL MEETING TO ORDER
The meeting was called to order at 7:00 PM by Chairman Olivier Gressier in the Avon Room, Building 1 Town Hall. Members present: Chairman Olivier Gressier, Robert Martin, Bernard Zahren, James DiPace, Linda Meyers, Brett Eisenlohr and Martin Kaplan. Members absent: none. Advisory member present: Giorgina Paiella, Diane Zhao and John Craig. Advisory members absent: none.
II. APPROVAL OF THE PRECEDING MEETING MINUTES - DECEMBER 2, 2009
Mr. Kaplan motioned, Mr. Eisenlohr seconded and all agreed to accept the December 2, 2009 minutes as written. None abstained.
III. COMMUNICATION FROM THE AUDIENCE
None.
IV. COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION MEMBERS
Mr. Martin apologized for missing a few key meetings, as he and some family members have been ill. Mr. Kaplan told of the impending raise in area water rates of 15%. Mr. DiPace concurred that both water companies the fire department uses are raising rates. The Town is asking to have the increases staged incrementally. Mr. Kaplan told of Farmington Woods’ efforts to prevent the increases and asked if there was anything the commission could do as well. Also, he will be attending the Town Council meeting tomorrow evening, which will include discussion of the Hydro project.
Mr. Zahren spoke to Ms. Dearstyne regarding the status of the $75,000.00 grant money. Ms. Robinson e-mailed him with news that she’d hope to hear from the State by the end of the month. Mr. Craig offered that the State has again put a hold on all expenditures outside of their internal budget. Mr. Zahren said that it was stimulus monies to which Mr. Craig replied that it was still administered by the State and fell under the above constriction.
Mr. Zahren told of his recent attendance at the Library Renovation Committee’s meeting. He has urged the Library Committee to seek the LEED certification as a show of Avon’s commitment to sustainability. Through one of the proposals from that meeting, Mr. Zahren showed cost comparisons of several certifications such as the LEED, the State High Performance document, and the Green Globes. The LEED and State certification each have an estimated cost of $150,000.00, which the Library Committee had not budgeted, and was reluctant to go to the taxpayers while the certification process was still unclear. Mr. Zahren feared that the State could demand the certification anyway as a precept to issuance of the grant money. Mr. Zahren also added that there was a lot of assistance the clean energy commission could
give to the Library committee with energy efficiencies in lighting or mechanical systems. Any decisions either committee made would still have to be presented to the Town Council for approval. Ms. Meyers explained that from what she’d read about the Library, they were going to be heavy users of energy through the doubling of the size of the building and adding more computers stations, and the modern library will be more about computers than books. Mr. Gressier offered to help the Library committee with the clean energy committee’s expertise in energy savings. He posed how this commission could articulate to the Library committee the benefits of having the certification. Mr. Craig offered that having the certification would lead to energy savings on the operation of the building as well as attracting certain funding. Mr. Zahren admitted that as of now, no one knows if the State will require the certification. Mr. Gressier admitted that it wasn’t going to get
resolved tonight.
Mr. Gressier congratulated Mr. Eisenlohr on the good work he’d done recently at the regional meeting, which was well attended and enjoyed by everyone. Ms. Meyers said she’d been exchanging phone calls with Mr. Larry Sparks of the Roaring Brook School but had nothing to add. Mr. Gressier said there was a meeting Thursday 10:15 AM at the school to discuss the energy savings contest.
Mr. Craig explained about the cold we’ve been experiencing recently in CT and across the nation. Although the total temperature is rising globally, the phenomenon is creating regional climate changes. As predicted as a result of global warming, our area has been experiencing these regional climatic changes in rainfall amounts and temperatures. The “phasing” occurring in the Arctic Circle, where water changes form from ice to vapor, is creating the need for more energy here. This is why he says it is so important to save energy by changing the way we use it.
V. OLD BUSINESS: a. Clean Energy Fund Meeting – Dec. 14th, b. Energy Competition
Mr. Eisenlohr discussed the recent Clean Energy Fund Meeting held December 14, 2009. He said the meeting was well attended but he wished the information were more detailed. He also said the information gathered at the Boot Camp was more helpful. Mr. Kaplan felt the Town of Cornwall’s presentation was the best. Mr. Eisenlohr read an e-mail he received from Jim Ray, a member of Simsbury’s Clean Energy Task Force, commenting on the possibility of an energy competition between the high schools. Mr. Gressier mentioned a clean energy customized form from CL & P that could be tailored for Avon resident sign-ups to be included with the bills. Mr. Craig felt it worth finding out how the CT Clean Energy Fund is auditing for each town for the 20% by 2010 contest.
Mr. Gressier discussed the school energy competition. He has been in contact with Mr. David Paul who said his custodians would be monitoring the equipment for energy use. He had hoped to run the contest from January 15th through February 15th but most committee members felt that wouldn’t give them enough time. Ms. Zhao and Ms. Paiella felt they would need more time to publicize the contest in order to attract more participants. Mr. Gressier would like to see school energy groups and PTOs get involved. The commission agreed to run the contest February 22nd through April 22nd to see which Avon school could save the most energy compared to one year ago.
VI. NEW BUSINESS: a. Evaluate Committee Direction, b. Energy manager – Bob Martin, c. Letter addressing the increase in energy rates, d. Renewable Energy Sign-ups – Brett Eisenlohr
Mr. Martin told of a phone call he received from the Facilities Manager of West Hartford schools and town, Bob Palmer, asking to set up a meeting to discuss joining Simsbury, Farmington, Bloomfield, and West Hartford for an application to the State for an regional Energy Manager grant. On December 23rd, Mr. Martin and Ms. Robinson met with Mr. Palmer and discussed sharing an energy consultant one-day a week with each of the other four towns. In lieu of adding a town employee, hiring an outside consultant would save benefits costs and a longer-term commitment. The new Town Manager, Mr. Robertson, will be presenting Avon’s part of the grant to the Town Council at their meeting tomorrow night, to meet the deadline submission date of this Friday. Mr. Martin feels the consultant can help direct the commission
to what monies there are out there, help with where to go for information and the public likes the idea of regionalization. Total money available is a little less than $1 million. Mr. Palmer feels the application has a good chance of being accepted.
Mr. Kaplan motioned to submit the five town (West Hartford, Avon, Simsbury, Bloomfield, Farmington) Regional Grant Application to the Town Council for approval at their January 7th, 2010 meeting, Mr. Martin seconded and all agreed. None opposed.
Mr. Gressier thanked Mr. Martin for his work on the application. He then discussed the Commission’s direction going forward. The Commission will have to focus on an energy plan, the 20% by 2010 contest and getting the points earned for the efforts, and projects such as the Library renovation or others that come up. Mr. Martin felt we needed to focus on the schools, as they are the biggest energy users and where we could get more bang for the buck. Mr. Kaplan felt the proposed CL & P increase in transmission rates could hurt the 20% by 2010 efforts as it would negate cost savings. He’d like to have the Town and regions organize to stop the DPUC from allowing the increase. Mr. Zahren feared the Town did not value the efforts of the Commission. Mr. Martin said it took time to establish credibility and
strength, and felt they were doing all they could with what little they had to work with, and felt proud of the accomplishments thus far. Mr. Craig suggested holding informational meetings with the Town to educate them about the mission of the group. Mr. DiPace mentioned an Avon Day planning meeting was already coming soon. Mr. Kaplan emphasized behavior modification. Mr. Zahren suggested asking the public to offer ideas to the committee. Mr. Gressier invited the members to e-mail any ideas they had.
VII. DO ANY BUSINESS TO COME BEFORE THIS MEETING
VIII. ADJOURN
Mr. Gressier motioned, Mr. Zahren seconded and all agreed to adjourn the meeting at 8:45 PM. None opposed.
Respectfully submitted:
Chairman Olivier Gressier
Attest: Susan Gatcomb, Clerk
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